The Obama Presidency

Following the November 2010 midterms, in which the Republicans took control of the House of Representatives and reduced the Democratic majority in the Senate, we asked a number of scholars to assess the first two years of the Obama presidency and look forward to the second half of his first term.

Scholars and journalists (along with the assorted late-night comedian) routinely diminish and ridicule empathy and the politicians who display it. Along with “I didn’t inhale,” it’s likely that the most parodied line from Bill Clinton was something about “feeling your pain.” But as qualities of leadership and character are concerned, few are as valuable or useful for a president as empathy.
And, President Obama exhibits the persistent and powerful “empathy gap” that he manifests on an almost daily basis. Read the rest of this entry »

Democrats better hope that our president figures out quickly that the liberal/progressive vision of bigger and better government is bankrupt. Maybe he could add that Americans aren’t exactly rutting in bovine contentment in some cradle-to-grave administrative despotism. The famous “road to serfdom” hasn't gotten anywhere near serfdom, and people are, in truth, more morally and economically anxious—isolated and adrift--than ever. They want much of the welfare state mended, not ended, and they want it to be more compatible with personal moral responsibility, "family values," and local control. Read the rest of this entry »

Following the November 2010 midterms, in which the Republicans took control of the House of Representatives and reduced the Democratic majority in the Senate, we asked a number of scholars to assess the first two years of the Obama presidency and look forward to the second half of his first term.